Now, help at hand for #MeToo victims who do not want to file formal complaint

Spurred by the #MeToo campaign and complaints of sexual harassment from women across the country, the CID Crime (Women and Child) at Gandhinagar, has been for some time now discreetly, sensitively and effectively tackling cases where formal complaints are not registered. This, because the victims either do not want to go through lengthy legal processes and/or fear a backlash by their tormentor and/or find it embarrassing to get into the public eye. The fear of law has proved to be an effective deterrence in several such cases.

ADGP CID Crime (Women and Child), Anil Pratham said his department received several complaints from women who were sexually harassed but wanted the problem to be dealt with utmost discretion, without filing a formal complaint.

‘We do not want women to suffer in silence’

Of the 12,500 calls the dedicated ‘181’ police helpline for women receives in a month, 350 to 450 calls are pertaining to physical stalking and eve teasing. Of these as many as 10 calls are about workplace harassment. However, many of these victims do not want their identity to be disclosed. Pratham directly deals with three to four such cases in a month. Urging more victims to come forward, he said, “I want to raise awareness about #MeToo movement among women and provide them a platform where they can seek complete discretion while complaining. Their safety is of utmost importance to us.”

‘Employer at IT firm warned’

Take the case of a woman working with an IT company in Gandhinagar. The owner was seeking sexual favours and constantly harassing her.

“She did not want to register a formal complaint but wanted this to stop immediately.

When the owner learnt that the woman had spoken to the CID Crime, he filed an FIR of data theft against her. We ensured the fake complaint was retracted. The employer was given a stern warning that action would be initiated against him if there were further complaints from her,” he said.

‘Teacher transferred’

“In another case, girl students had complained of sexual harassment by a teacher in Ahmedabad. They did not wish to file a complaint though names of victims are always kept discreet. We approached the principal who told the teacher he could not continue teaching in that class. Though he was retained in the job, he was told that his actions are being watched,” Pratham said.

“In almost all cases, such actions do the trick. While the tormentor knows he will be inviting trouble if he continues with his mischief and stops his actions, he is spared of public humiliation. The woman, who may sometimes not want her husband, parents or the society to know her problems is spared of the tribulation,” he added.

‘Local goons dealt with’

In another case where the CID acted swiftly, a father had called up the CID Crime (Women and Child) (also known as the Women’s Cell) about two youths stalking and harassing his daughter in Vejalpur area. He did not wish to file a formal complaint as he intended to stay in the area and the two were local goons. The CID Crime with the help of local police warned the youth of action with full force of law if they continued. “It was preventive action and the warning paid off,” Pratham said.

Work environments can be sullied if there are sexual predators around. A trainer at an NGO that has a nationwide presence used to touch, and constantly harass women and asking them to compromise. The Women’s Cell engaged with the management and ensured transferred to an office outside Gujarat.

‘Kin approach Women’s Cell seeking discretion’

Many women who are sexually harassed by male bosses, colleagues, neighbourhood stalkers do not want to file official complaints and yet want their problems to end. Several of them or their relatives have approached the Women’s Cell for help seeking discretion.

“We use the services of volunteers from Friends for Women & Child who serve as a bridge between the complainant and the local police. There are times when the police do not take such complaints seriously and there is lack of swift action. Volunteers speak to victims and local police and sensitise them of the actions that can serve as deterrents. The CID Crime issues the necessary instructions and directions. It has proved to be a win-win situation in cases where women do not want a formal complaint or do not want harsh action against their tormentors,” said Pratham.

Over 2,000 calls made to 181 helpline in 6 months

The 181 helpline also deals with these cases but the difference here is that the identity of the complainant is revealed to the offender. “We do need to let the offender know about the complainant or he will challenge us otherwise. We also have systematic Call Details Record (CDR) to track data so that we know the number of calls made by offenders to the victim. The case only closes when the calls are reduced to zero,” 181 project head Narendrasinh Gohil told Mirror.

He further said, “Ninety-five per cent of the cases are solved through just one call. We have trained counsellors who speak to the oppressed women. We also have a systematic tracking system in place that tracks the number of calls that the offender makes. The police action desk at 181 helpline, headed by a woman constable, then speaks to the offender.

This has been able to solve 95 per cent of the cases without filing an official complaint or even letting the family of the victim know. There has been no need to file even a police complaint in such cases.” Jigisha Patel, nodal officer of Mahila Police volunteers said, “In cases where complaints are received directly by Women’s Cell, they are forwarded to 181.

But in some cases, the ADGP directly contacts volunteers as he is responsible for recruiting them. He also directly gets in touch with the local police in sensitive cases that may not come on our records.”

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